TRAIN drivers and crew members for Germany’s main railway operator will see their working week reduced from 38 hours to 35 by 2029 without having their pay cut.

The arrangement is central to a deal that state-owned operator Deutsche Bahn reached on Monday with the GDL union, which represents many of its drivers and some other workers, after five months of negotiations punctuated by strikes.

The main sticking point was GDL’s demand for working hours to be reduced without a pay cut.